Davey stood with his back to the fire and scanned the woods. His ears struggled to pinpoint the location of the infant wailing. The shifting floor of the forest was in front of him and then beside him. The hair stood up on his neck as he tried to keep track of the sounds in the darkness.

Then there was another shriek directly in front of him. He realized his own slender form was blocking the orange light which could reveal the source of the noise. So, Davey gripped the walking stick tightly and took three steps to the left.

Orange light glinted out of two glowing eyes and reflected from a miniature waterfall of blood. The thing held an infant inside it’s horrific mouth, a twitching and crying baby covered in blood, and it chewed as it began a low growl.

The younger boys panicked immediately upon seeing the outline of the hairy beast and hearing its sinister growl. Davey froze up and involuntarily stepped backwards, his foot finding the campfire to scorch him back into reality.

He swung the stick.